David Sigmund and Jay Greaves Married at General Synod

July 1, 2013

Members of the Southeast Conference delegation were proud witnesses this past weekend to the ways that God is still speaking in love! On Sunday, June 30, David Sigmund and Jay Greaves were married during General Synod 2013 in Long Beach, Calif. Rev. David Sigmund, who was a Member of Discernment at Kirkwood UCC in Atlanta and is now the pastor of pastor of Seaside Community UCC in Long Beach, said, “We didn’t want to wait. We want to live into this reality that our Stillspeaking God is creating in our midst.”

Rev. Susannah Davis, pastor of SEC congregation Kirkwood UCC, co-officiated the service with minister and LGBT activist Rev. Mel White of Long Beach. Full of both warmth and prophetic voice, the wedding was conducted via a flash-mob style ceremony on the second level of the Long Beach Conference Center and was witnessed by members of the news media as well as a throng of General Synod participants cheering and singing from the floor below. The service took place just days after the United States Supreme Court returned Proposition 8 to the state of California and the 9th District U.S. Court of Appeals lifted the hold on same-sex weddings.

David and Jay have been together 10 years. While they had already embraced the stance of their UCC faith community, which affirmed marriage equality in 2005, “The validation and legal recognition of our relationship is incredible,” said David.